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Radiohead's Numbers Are in, and Yes, the Experiment Worked

Remember Radiohead's experiment, in which they let people choose how much they wanted to pay for their latest album, In Rainbows? Call it a publicity stunt or an innovative business model, but the initial numbers show that the experiment was a success.

Now, the final numbers are in. In short, In Rainbows sold better than their last album, selling 1.75 million copies of the physical CD, 100.000 box sets, and 30,000 units on iTunes in the US in the first week of availability. The album was number 1 in both the UK and US for the first three months; it was played 17 million times on Last.FM, and even to this day it's in the top 200 UK & US as far as sales of the physical CD go.

Yes, they're a big band. Yes, their audience is not the same as, say, Shakira's. Yes, this was one of the first such experiments and it caused a great deal of attention regardless of the music.

But with these numbers, it's impossible not to call it a huge success. Essentially, Radiohead has shown that - in some cases, at least - it's possible to completely cut out the middleman (read: the record label) and still have a very successful record. Furthermore, they've proven that alternative business models are possible, and that fans aren't all mindless zombies who are only looking to get as much as they can for as little money as possible. Now, it's time for the record labels to start changing their business models - or perish.

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